Influencing the Fashion Industry: Virtual Beauty vs Physical Beauty

April, 2019

It is no coincidence that IFA Paris has chosen to approach the theme of beauty from a different angle at the next Bachelor in Fashion Design & Technology graduation show; "Beauty" will incorporate all the codes of female and male attributes, while promoting a true sense of freedom of appearances. Pieces inspired by disabled fashion, modest fashion or from upcycling will reflect our desire to take an innovative look at the body and clothing.

Lil Miquela

It is no coincidence that IFA Paris has chosen to approach the theme of beauty from a different angle at the next Bachelor in Fashion Design & Technology graduation show; "Beauty" will incorporate all the codes of female and male attributes, while promoting a true sense of freedom of appearances. Pieces inspired by disabled fashion, modest fashion or from upcycling will reflect our desire to take an innovative look at the body and clothing. Deconstructing stereotypes, however, implies a reflection on this unbridled quest for absolute beauty, linked to a globalization of aesthetic norms.

The beauty market reveals the speed at which our society is changing, confirming this desire to achieve, whatever the path, an idealistic perfection. The body has become a means of social positioning, so the practices of beautification are constantly being rejected. The standards set are becoming so unrealistic that most women will never be able to achieve them. Fostered by the media and advertising world, with a large number of edited photos, these visual and virtual cues only reinforce the phenomena of body-shaming or dysmorphia, without any discernment. Sad reality from which some actors are trying to get away from without too much damaging their image.

Most of the major luxury brands proudly communicate on their new codes of good conduct: now prohibit access to catwalks for models who are too skinny during Fashion Week shows... But there is still a question. Did the two decrees implementing the "model law" (photo editing + IMC control) not influence this choice? It's omerta (complete silence) on the subject!

In the midst of controversies and initiatives, the fashion industry has found an alternative solution by offering another form of beauty! Lil Miquela, Shudu Gram, Bermuda all have the particularity of working for the biggest brands: Prada, Chanel, Balmain are all struggling to get them... But don't look for them at an offline shooting, but rather in fashion tech because, beyond historical or cultural markers, there is a new way of beauty: the digital beauty.

Born from the prowess of artificial intelligence, these models of a new kind question the perfection of false pretenses. These super digital models are emerging strangely at the same time, when human models are invited to reflect more specifically the realism of female diversity.

Achievement or regression? It is still too early to measure the impact that these virtual models will have on the new standards of beauty. However, there is still doubt about the improvement of distress regarding identity related to standards of beauty, since these utopian creatures (but nevertheless resulting from the pure human imagination), are even further away from reality....